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05/02/2013 Liz -Dulwich College Title: Timmy Failure --Mistakes Were Made, Stephan Pastis
Take eleven-year-old Timmy Failure — the clueless, comically self-confident CEO of the best detective agency in town, perhaps even the nation. Add his impressively lazy business partner, a very large polar bear named Total. Throw in the Failuremobile — Timmy's mom's Segway — and what you have is Total Failure, Inc., a global enterprise destined to make Timmy so rich his mother won't have to stress out about the bills anymore. Of course, Timmy's plan does not include the four-foot-tall female whose name shall not be uttered. And it doesn't include Rollo Tookus, who is so obsessed with getting into "Stanfurd" that he can't carry out a no-brainer spy mission. From the offbeat creator ofPearls Before Swinecomes an endearingly bumbling hero in a caper whose peerless hilarity is accompanied by a whodunit twist. With perfectly paced visual humor, Stephan Pastis gets you snorting with laughter, then slyly carries the joke a beat further — or sweetens it with an unexpected poignant moment — making this a comics-inspired story (the first in a new series) that truly stands apart from the pack.
05/02/2013 Liz -Dulwich College Crouching Tiger- Yiang Chang Compestine
Vinson is very excited when his grandfather comes from China for a visit. When Grandpa practices tai chi in the garden, Vinson asks to learn, hoping it will be like kung fu, full of kicks and punches. But tai chi's meditative postures are slow and still, and Vinson quickly gets bored. He can't understand why Grandpa insists on calling him by his Chinese name, Ming Da, or why he has to wear a traditional Chinese jacket to the Chinese New Year parade. As the parade assembles, however, he notices the great respect given to his grandfather and the lion dancers under his training. And when Vinson is offered a role in the parade, he realizes that being part Chinese can be pretty cool--and is ready to start learning from his grandpa's martial-arts mastery in earnest.
05/02/2013 Liz-Dulwich College The Apothecary - Malie Meloy
It's 1952 and the Scott family has moved unexpectedly from Los Angeles to London. There, fourteen-year-old Janie gets a homesickness cure from the neighborhood apothecary and becomes fascinated by his defiant son, Benjamin Burrows—a boy struggling with his destiny, who isn't afraid to stand up to authority and who dreams of becoming a spy.
When Benjamin's father disappears, Janie and Benjamin must uncover the secrets of the apothecary's ancient book, the Pharmacopoeia, in order to find him, all while keeping those secrets out of the hands of Russian spies. Discovering transformative elixirs they never imagined could exist, Janie and Benjamin embark on a dangerous race to save the apothecary and prevent impending nuclear disaster.
3/Feb/2013 J. Fitzgerald IST
Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Not Reading, by Tommy Greenwald - There is a more recent sequel - realistic fiction
Grades 4 and up.
“This is a fun, fast-moving look at middle-school life through the eyes of a kid who would rather clean his room than pick up a book. Reluctant readers will be pleased.” --SLJ
"A delightful choice for reluctant readers...Tommy Greenwald’s writing style is breezy and accessible without being too easy. It is also extremely funny and hard to put down. If the book’s cover showed something blowing up, every reluctant boy reader in middle school would be proud to carry it around while secretly enjoying the nonviolent, straightforward story. Bookworms won’t care; they’ll love it either way." --BookPage
1/25/2013 K. Gockley ISB
Monsieur Marceau
Booklist starred (October 15, 20 12 (Vol. 109, No. 4)) *This just won the Orbis Award, is a biography, will be accessible to grade 3*Author may be willing to come out to Beijing***
Grades 2-4. This handsome picture book tells the story of Marcel Marceau, the maestro of mime. Born in France, he was 16 when WWII broke out and shifted his life. He changed his last name to hide his Jewish identity and worked with the French underground. After the war, he studied mime and created his signature character, Bip. Quotes from Marceau connect the silence of those who returned from concentration camps (where his father had died) with his own choice of silence on stage. Schubert distills his complex life story into a short, pithy text that reads aloud well. While she discusses his art and his worldwide fame, a series of images bring Marceau’s movements and emotions to life on the page. Well thought out and varied in composition, DuBois’ paintings illustrate the text literally while expanding it visually and emotionally, particularly in the haunting sequence of narrative scenes during the war. An afterword offers a somewhat more detailed account of Marceau’s life and suggests activities for children who would like to try mime. Even readers with an unfavorable view of mime as a medium will find plenty to admire in this picture-book biography of the man behind the whiteface makeup. Always October - Bruce Coville.
Kirkus Reviews (July 1, 2012)
From the very first line ("We've only got two weeks before Jake has to turn into a monster for the first time") to the riveting ending, this fantasy will have readers turning pages recklessly. Jake, son and grandson of men who disappeared without explanation, becomes enmeshed in the family mysteries when his (informally) adopted baby brother turns into a charming, fuzzy green monster. Jake and his sidekick "Weird Lily" Cawker leave our Earth and land in the world of Always October, where it is ever autumn, the landscape holds many dangers, and monsters reign over all. Their quest: Save both Earth and Almost October from a deranged monster. Documented in alternate chapters by Lily and Jake--which allows each one to end in a cliffhanger--the journey is exciting and moves along at a fine pace. Bursting with enticing charactersand building tension, this book has everything a reader could want--breathtaking suspense, monstrously entertaining worldbuilding and lots of "punny" and burp-and-fart humor. Surprises abound: Most threads are wrapped up, but there is room left for other books with these diverting characters
The No-Dogs-Rule by Kashmira Sheth
Grades 1-3. Eight-year-old Ishan is desperate for a dog. His older brother and Dad agree, but Mom (“the alpha dog of our pack”) opposes the idea, prompting a creative campaign to change her mind. In a series of hilarious misadventures, Ishan sets off the smoke detector preparing Mom’s favorite breakfast, can’t prevent the neighbor’s golden retriever from jumping on Mom, and displays canine behaviors to show how cute they are. During his resultant time-out, Ishan investigates the retriever’s barking and discovers his neighbor needs medical help—and the dog, a temporary home. The author of Boys without Names (2010) here addresses a younger audience with characters who are both funny and believable. Much like his female counterparts Junie B. Jones and Ramona, Ishan’s naivety and creativity will endear him to readers, as will his sibling difficulties. Ishan’s South Asian heritage plays a prominent role, but it doesn’t drive the plot. Illustrated with pencil drawings, this will be popular with beginning chapter-book readers.
1/14/2013 A Boone- ISB
Suggestions from grades 3-5 students, parents and teachers for Panda Nominees Middle Grades
Grades 4-6. “Did a delicate cobweb link us all, silky lines trailing through the air?” Call it coincidence, fate, or just good old-fashioned magic, but the characters in Creech’s latest novel are all connected to one another. Readers are first introduced to two orphan girls—spirited Naomi and truth-teller Lizzie—who live in the small town of Blackbird Tree. Over the course of the novel, they discover a number of mysterious objects and people, namely “Finn boy,” who falls out of a tree into their lives, and a stranger named the Dingle Dangle Man. Alternating with these events are the cryptic goings-on across the ocean in Ireland’s Rooks Orchard, where a woman named Sybil lives with her companion, Miss Pilpenny, and two foxhounds. Although several connections feel too convenient and may strain credulity with some readers, the way that the two plot threads weave together is ultimately a joyous testament to the surprising nature of life and the smallness of our world.
Grades 4-7. Minty Fresh knows all the local superstitions: the seven-feet-tall Man-Bat, the Witch Lady, and Crazy Ike. But nothing prepares her for the Secret Tree. There she pulls out slips of paper on which other kids in town have written about crushes, being held back a grade, and even placing curses on their enemies. Minty makes it her mission to track down each writer to see how their secrets affect others—as well as how to handle her own secret fear that she is losing her best friend right before starting middle school. Universal anxieties about growing apart from friends are expressed with such earnest clarity that middle school–bound readers will take comfort from Minty’s discovery that everyone has insecurities and must cope the best way they can. Standiford’s (How to Say Goodbye in Robot, 2009) charming and mysterious story of friendship, growing up, and keeping secrets rests squarely on the shoulders of an immensely likable protagonist who possesses a delightful oddness, like so many imaginative children in real life.
The amazing adventures of John Smith, Jr., aka Houdini
Grades 5-7. Inspired by the prospect of money and comments made by a writer visiting his middle school, 13-year-old Houdini (nicknamed for his hero) decides to write a “kid’s novel” and finds that it enables him to understand the people around him differently. He has a pretty good handle on his two best friends, but he is less understanding of the people he fears in his working-class Providence neighborhood—namely a classmate with a bullying streak and a one-armed Vietnam veteran known as Old Man Jackson. A bit grittier and more believably boylike than most contemporary first-person narratives, this novel has a lot of heart as well. And while a narrator who makes lists is common enough, Houdini’s are decidedly more amusing than most. With Houdini’s concerns at school and in the neighborhood, not to mention his brother being missing in action in Iraq and his father’s fear of losing his job, the story extends in many directions at once, but Johnson pulls it all together in the end. A Harry Houdini–related bibliography is appended.
Grades 4-7. When Liza’s little brother, Patrick, comes downstairs one morning, she knows that Spindlers have gotten him: while he slept, they crept in, stole his soul, deposited their eggs, and slipped back to their underground lairs. Soon the fake Patrick will turn to dust, and a thousand new Spindlers will burst into the world. Liza tries to tell her exhausted, busy parents, but they don’t believe her. So Liza sets out to reclaim Patrick’s soul. Oliver’s new middle-grade novel feels a bit like a fantasy checklist: misunderstood girl goes through door on quest, teams up with eccentric sidekick, is double-crossed, solves riddles and thwarts monsters, is saved from disaster by friendly creatures, and returns home with new understanding. In spite of these familiar elements, the story flows well, with enough dangers to propel the pace and plenty of memorable characters, including Mirabella, the makeup-wearing rat. Oliver creates a sympathetic heroine in Liza, whose trials, both Below and Above, will appeal to young readers.
Grades 5-7. Stead follows her Newbery Medal winner, When You Reach Me (2009), with another story that deals with reality and perception. Seventh-grader Georges (like Seurat) is living in a new apartment in Brooklyn since the loss of his father’s job necessitated selling their house. His mother still has her job as a nurse, but now she must work double shifts. He goes to the same school, though, which is not necessarily a good thing, because he is relegated to the outsiders’ table. Having a neighbor his age, the loosely homeschooled Safer, offers some new possibilities for Georges, especially since Safer considers himself a spy and is happy to lure Georges into his games. There are two mysteries here: one concerns Georges’ mother, and the other the truth about a shady building tenant, who Safer maintains could be a murderer. Many readers will guess at least part of the truth about the first, despite the sometimes-labored effort put into concealing it. The revelation about the second will be more of a surprise and offers insight into the nature of friendship. Fresh and funny, this will speak to many children trying to find their own way
Grades 4-8. After her father has been missing in action for nine years during the Vietnam War, 10-year-old Hà flees with her mother and three older brothers. Traveling first by boat, the family reaches a tent city in Guam, moves on to Florida, and is finally connected with sponsors in Alabama, where Hà finds refuge but also cruel rejection, especially from mean classmates. Based on Lai’s personal experience, this first novel captures a child-refugee’s struggle with rare honesty. Written in accessible, short free-verse poems, Hà’s immediate narrative describes her mistakes—both humorous and heartbreaking—with grammar, customs, and dress (she wears a flannel nightgown to school, for example); and readers will be moved by Hà’s sorrow as they recognize the anguish of being the outcast who spends lunchtime hiding in the bathroom. Eventually, Hà does get back at the sneering kids who bully her at school, and she finds help adjusting to her new life from a kind teacher who lost a son in Vietnam. The elemental details of Hà’s struggle dramatize a foreigner’s experience of alienation. And even as she begins to shape a new life, there is no easy comfort: her father is still gone.
Grades 3-6. First things first: Hatke draws awesome aliens. Lots and lots of them. Wee hairy ones and giant blobby ones, many-eyed ones and multiple-limbed ones, giant cat ones and head-inside-another-head ones. They’re all over the place in this smart and sassy interstellar adventure that picks up where Zita the Spacegirl (2011) left off. How do you follow up saving an entire planet from destruction by asteroid? For Zita, you go on a cosmic victory tour, somewhat reluctantly, to meet your adoring throngs of new fans. For Hatke, you whip up a story that digs into the high price of fame without sacrificing a drop of the fun, funny, and far-out charm that made his first graphic novel such a smash. After a robotic imposter takes Zita’s place and promises to save another planet from doom, Zita hijacks a spaceship (and quickly gets libeled as Crimegirl by hysterical galactic media) and eludes the authorities while making a new friend and mentor en route to a cosmic clash between a titanic planetary guardian and vicious heart-shaped space meanies. Zita is still looking for a way home, but it looks like she has got plenty more adventuring to plow through before she finds one. Top-flight space capering brimming with heart and heroism.
Grades 3-6. Madeleine’s hippie parents, Mildred and Flo, refuse to understand the fifth grade, preferring the esoteric, spiritual truths of luminarias and shopping at the Salvation Army. Madeleine takes two ferries and two buses to school, escaping the peculiarities of Hornby Island to grasp at something normal. Meanwhile, Mr. and Mrs. Bunny have moved into an abandoned carriage house just down the lane and, to complement their interests in automobiles and millinery, are hanging up a detective shingle. When a cadre of sinister foxes (“Mwa-haha,” they intone, having picked it up watching television) kidnap Mildred and Flo, Madeleine joins up with the Detective Bunnies and, without the help of her comatose code-breaker uncle, prepares to rescue them. Horvath tells Mr. and Mrs. Bunny’s tale with old-fashioned nostalgia, juxtaposing it with Madeleine’s schoolgirl mopes in a sweet and sour froth of nonsense. Blackall’s ink-and-wash illustrations provide a quaint and curious punctuation, contributing a peculiar whimsy all their own. The result feels like an instant classic, with a contemporary resonance and a tone of yesteryear, fairly begging to be read aloud. Oh, and there are marmots..
Grades 5-8. Kids’ books about befriending somebody “different” could fill a library. But this debut novel rises to the top through its subtle shifting of focus to those who are “normal,” thereby throwing into doubt presumptions readers may have about any of the characters. Nominally, the story is about 10-year-old August, a homeschooled boy who is about to take the plunge into a private middle school. Even 27 operations later, Auggie’s face has what doctors call “anomolies”; Auggie himself calls it “my tiny, mushed-up face.” He is gentle and smart, but his mere physical presence sends the lives of a dozen people into a tailspin: his sister, his old friends, the new kids he meets, their parents, the school administrators—the list goes on and on. Palacio’s bold move is to leave Auggie’s first-person story to follow these increasingly tangential characters. This storytelling strategy is always fraught with peril because of how readers must refresh their interest level with each new section. However, much like Ilene Cooper’s similarly structured Angel in My Pocket (2011), Palacio’s novel feels not only effortless but downright graceful, and by the stand-up-and-cheer conclusion, readers will be doing just that, and feeling as if they are part of this troubled but ultimately warm-hearted community. The mark of Athena by Riordan, Rick
Booklist (November 1, 2012
Grades 5-8. Terrifying dreams and enigmatic prophecies mean danger for seven teen demigods, but also good times for fans of The Heroes of Olympus series. This third volume thrusts Percy, Jason, Annabeth, Hazel, Leo, Frank, and Piper into action once again. Representing both Greek and Roman camps, the seven companions undertake a mission to prevent the imminent destruction of Rome, the awakening of Gaea, and the end of the world. Meanwhile, they help Annabeth in her quest to recover the ancient statue of Athena stolen from the Parthenon. Along the way, they encounter Nemesis in Utah, Bacchus in Kansas, Phorcys in Atlanta, Aphrodite in Charleston, and Hercules at the Strait of Gibraltar. Throughout the novel, the juxtaposition of humor and terror makes both aspects of the writing more vivid. The demigods use their wits and their weapons skillfully in a string of encounters, and their insecurities make the characters all the more appealing. With a true storyteller’s sense of pacing, Riordan creates another compelling adventure, right down to the cliff-hanger at the end. Stay tuned for volume four.
Grades 4-8. A brooding, Dickensian novel with a touch of fantasy and a glimmer of hope, Schlitz’s latest opens in London in 1860, when lonely Clara, the only remaining child in a doctor’s grief-stricken household, attempts to celebrate her twelfth birthday. Grisini the puppet master is engaged to perform, along with the two orphaned children, Lizzie Rose and Parsefall, who serve as his assistants. Clara bridges the class divide to befriend the children. After kidnapping Clara for ransom, cruel Grisini disappears, leaving Lizzie Rose and Parsefall struggling to survive on their own. They make their way to the country house of a bewitched woman whose magical amulet gives her amazing powers while draining away her humanity. There they learn certain grisly secrets involving their cruel master, Clara’s fate, and the wealthy witch, who seeks to control them all. The magic of the storytelling here lies in the subtle depiction of menacing evil. After working its way insidiously through the characters’ lives, it is defeated by the children, who grow in strength and understanding throughout the novel. Vividly portrayed and complex, the characters are well-defined individuals whose separate strands of story are colorful and compelling. Schlitz weaves them into an intricate tapestry that is as mysterious and timeless as a fairy tale.
January 11, 2013 - Nadine R. - ISB Young Fredle by Cynthia Voigt (2011) - fantasy
Booklist (January 1, 2011 (Vol. 107, No. 9))
Grades 3-5. A companion book to Angus and Sadie (2005) in the Davis Farm series, this story features Fredle, a young mouse who lives behind the wall in the farmhouse kitchen. Captured by Missus and released outdoors, Fredle is blindsided by unfamiliar sensations and scared witless. Though he cautiously befriends Sadie the dog and a couple of outdoor mice, Fredle finds that he must gather his wits to deal with the previously unknown threats, such as raptors (flying predators!) and raccoons, largely on his own. Appealing black-and-white illustrations capture the characters’ actions and emotions with style. Cautious but growing in courage, cunning, and understanding, Fredle makes a sympathetic hero as he slowly discovers that the rules of his own small community do not necessarily make sense in the larger world. That could be a heartening lesson for readers who pick up on it, but others will simply enjoy the hair-raising adventures of this little mouse as he tries to survive alone in the world, find his way back home, and figure out where he really belongs. January 10, 2013 - Nadine R. - ISB Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin (2012) - folklore
Grades 3-6. This mesmerizing companion to the Newbery Honor Book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (2009) does not disappoint. Rendi has run away from home, stowed in the back of a merchant’s cart, until he is discovered and left stranded in the scarcely populated Village of Clear Sky. There he becomes the innkeeper’s chore boy and is introduced to a cast of characters, including Mr. Shan, a wise older man; Madame Chang, a mysterious out-of-town guest with a gift for storytelling; and a toad whom Mr. Shan calls Rabbit. All the while, the moon is missing, and it seems only Rendi is tormented by the sky’s sad wailing noises at night. Madame Chang insists that for each story she tells—including one about ruler Wang Yi’s wife, who transformed into a toad and lived out the rest of her days on the moon—Rendi must tell one of his own. Unlike its predecessor, this novel is stationary in setting, but it offers up similar stories based on Chinese folklore that interweave with and advance the main narrative. Each of the tales reveals something important about the teller, and most offer a key piece of the mysterious puzzle: what happened to the moon? A few characters from Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, including Magistrate Tiger, appear on the periphery of the action. Lin’s writing is clear and lyrical, her plotting complex, and her illustrations magical, all of which make this a book to be savored. January 10,2013 - Eileen H., Suzhou SIS
Spindlers by Lauren Oliver "Liza must venture Below to rescue her little brother's soul, stolen by evil, power-hungry spider people called spindlers, in this refreshingly creepy, intricately woven tale. A concealed hole in the wall behind a narrow bookcase in her family's basement is her entry, and amid loud scratching noises, Liza trips, falling down into the darkness Below. Mirabella, a giant rat who wears newspaper for a skirt, becomes her trusted guide to the spindlers' nests, which Liza must reach before the Feast of the Souls. But things are never what they seem in Oliver's vividly imagined world....An arduous, dangerous and fantastical journey ensues. As in the author's first terrific book for middle-grade readers, Liesl & Po (2011), there is a smorgasbord of literary references, including strong echoes of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. It is laced with humor and engaging wordplay, as well as riddles and death-defying tests and enchantments. Wholly original creatures populate the tale, some reassuring and wise, like the nocturni and lumer-lumpen, others wonderfully macabre (and ferocious), like the queen of the spindlers and the shape-shifting scawgs. In the course of her episodic quest, Liza discovers she is resourceful and brave; she sees things differently than before. Richly detailed, at times poetic, ultimately moving; a book to be puzzled over, enjoyed and, ideally, read aloud.(Fantasy. 8-12)" Kirkus Reviews online (May 2, 2012)
December 12, 2012 - Karen G., ISB The Superheroes Employment Agency by Marily Singer, 2012
Booklist (July 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 21))
Grades 2-4. Need a superhero? Batman out of your budget? Then head on down to the Superheroes Employment Agency, where you can rent the services of such B-listers as Blunder Woman, the Verminator, and Stuporman. Singer introduces each wannabe via a comic poem. For example, Weathergirl’s speciality is disrupting tea parties by creating a storm in the teapot: “They’re always planning something sinister / against a monarch or prime minister / over cake and cups of tea. / But then they have to deal with me.” Singer relates some stories with comic strips or fake advertisements and even finds ways to have two characters meet for transactions of business (or romance). Two four-page “reports” provide longer examples of a superhero's heroism. Take the Pretzel, for instance, who did a nice job tying his foes in knots, even if he did cause a mess: “The truth must be told: / it’s the Pretzel’s own fault / that our clients’ neat home / got so sprinkled with salt.” Meanwhile, Jones’ exaggerated cartoon interpretations of these bumblers keeps things super-duper silly. Timeless Thomas by Gene Barretta, 2012
Booklist (July 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 21))
Grades 2-4. Following his purviews of Ben Franklin (Now & Ben, 2006) and Leonardo da Vinci (Neo Leo, 2009), Barretta applies the same picture-book format to the inventions of Thomas Edison. Left-hand pages show people using modern technology (“Today . . . we can record any sound we like and save it”), while, across the spreads, Barretta reveals the roots found in Edison’s work: “Edison’s tinfoil phonograph was the first device to record sound and play it back.”Barretta covers the expected Edisonian highlights—the telephone, the light bulb, and the battery—alongside other fascinating projects, such as a huge vending machine designed to dole out urban necessities, including coal and produce, or the first movie studio, built on a circular track to allow sunlight to shine through an exposed roof. Chipper cartoon illustrations show a perma-grinning Edison cranking out invention after invention, but Barretta also slyly draws in some of Edison’s employees, who are identified in short concluding biographies, emphasizing that Edison didn’t go it alone. An entertaining, enlightening intro. November 12, 2012 - Eleanor S - IST Breaking Stalin's Nose by Eugene Yelchin (Holt, 2011)
This simple yet engaging story is told in the first-person and set in the Stalinist USSR. According to Horn Book (starred review, Sept/Oct 2011), "…this brief novel gets at the heart of a society that asks its citizens, even its children, to report on relatives and friends. Appropriately menacing illustrations by first-time novelist Yelchin add a sinister tone.” Recommended for ages 9 and up but could also work well in the Older Readers' category. I have successfully recommended this to 11th and 12th graders studying the USSR.
November 15, 2012 - K Gockley, ISB A Strange Place to Call Home by Marilyn Singer, illustrated by Ed Young (From Tanjian)
Booklist (October 15, 2012 (Vol. 109, No. 4))
Grades K-3. Why would some animals choose to live in extreme heat, cold, dryness, or darkness? Fourteen poems celebrate the unusual animals that have adapted to equally unusual habitats where competition is lighter and safety from predators is greater. Humboldt penguins burrow eggs along the dry coasts of Chile and Peru rather than riding on ice floes; snow monkeys stay warm by huddling in hot springs rather than swinging from trees; and ice worms wriggle beneath glacial ice rather than soil, aided by their natural antifreeze. Other poems, including the styles of free verse, rhyming, haiku, triolet, villanelle, and terza rima, describe the adaptations of blind cave fish, mudskippers, mountain goats, and petroleum flies. The final poem, “City Living,” shows adaptation in progress as red foxes adjust to urban sprawl. Young’s textured paper collage illustrations help evoke some of the planet’s seemingly less hospitable locales. Endnotes offer more information about each animal as well as the poetry forms used. This enlightening collection brings beauty and respect to strangeness.
November 22, Nadine R. - ISB Mind if I Read Your Mind? by Henry Winkler (Scholastic Press, 2012)
From the Publisher:
Billy and Hoover are back in the hilarious new series from bestselling authors Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver!
It's time for Moorepark Middle School's annual Speak Out Challenge, and Billy Broccoli thinks he's got it made. With his best friend Hoover Porterhouse--the ghost with the most--by his side, Billy's got the competition in the bag. Who wouldn't vote for a demonstration on mind reading?
But when Billy lands a spot on the sixth grade team, he starts spending more time with his new teammates than he does with Hoover. And the Hoove plays second fiddle to no one! If Billy's not careful, his secret weapon might just vanish into thin air, leaving Billy to pick up the pieces of a demonstration day disaster!
November 22, Nadine R. - ISB George and the Big Bang by Lucy Hawking (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers,c2012)
Booklist (September 1, 2012 (Online))
Grades 3-6. This, the third volume in a series by famed physicist Hawkins and his capable writer-daughter, blends the ongoing adventures of friends George and Annie with the latest theories about the universe. The breezily readable third-person narrative—accompanied by cheery spot illustrations—provides the framework for highlighting the science principles presented in four essays by experts in the field, with several pages devoted to each. There are also a dozen or so shorter “Special Factual Sections” that expound on topics such as “Problems Facing Our Planet,” “Space, Time, and Relativity,” and “The Quantum World.” As George and Annie travel to the moon and across Europe attempting to save her father, a cosmologist, from the evil organization TOERAG (intent on destroying him and much of scientific advancement), there occasionally seems to be a disconnect between the sweet, simple sci-fi plot and the technicalities of the information. Still, it’s clear that the former exists primarily to advance the later, making the book good for educational use and, most importantly, enjoyable for science-minded kid
November 23 - K Gockley, ISB
Nic Bishop Snakes
Booklist (November 15, 2012 (Vol. 109, No. 6))
Grades 2-4. For those who like their snakes way up close and personal, Bishop’s stunning photographs ought to do the trick. Unusual varieties of the slithery creatures, most pictured larger than life, fill the pages and are often poised as if ready to jump right out into readers’ laps. The photos are so alluring that it is tempting to overlook the text filling negative spaces, but readers will appreciate these brief and engrossing nuggets of information. It’s the same simple, highly effective format used in Nic Bishop Spiders (2007), Nic Bishop Frogs (2008), Nic Bishop Lizards (2010), and more. This time out, the showstopping centerfold is a Mojave rattlesnake pictured three times its actual size. The book closes with an interesting two-page note by Bishop about the particular challenges of photographing snakes. This will work as a read-aloud
How to post a nomination
05/02/2013 Liz -Dulwich College
Title: Timmy Failure --Mistakes Were Made, Stephan Pastis
05/02/2013 Liz -Dulwich College
Crouching Tiger- Yiang Chang Compestine
Vinson is very excited when his grandfather comes from China for a visit. When Grandpa practices tai chi in the garden, Vinson asks to learn, hoping it will be like kung fu, full of kicks and punches. But tai chi's meditative postures are slow and still, and Vinson quickly gets bored. He can't understand why Grandpa insists on calling him by his Chinese name, Ming Da, or why he has to wear a traditional Chinese jacket to the Chinese New Year parade. As the parade assembles, however, he notices the great respect given to his grandfather and the lion dancers under his training. And when Vinson is offered a role in the parade, he realizes that being part Chinese can be pretty cool--and is ready to start learning from his grandpa's martial-arts mastery in earnest.
05/02/2013 Liz-Dulwich College
The Apothecary - Malie Meloy
It's 1952 and the Scott family has moved unexpectedly from Los Angeles to London. There, fourteen-year-old Janie gets a homesickness cure from the neighborhood apothecary and becomes fascinated by his defiant son, Benjamin Burrows—a boy struggling with his destiny, who isn't afraid to stand up to authority and who dreams of becoming a spy.
When Benjamin's father disappears, Janie and Benjamin must uncover the secrets of the apothecary's ancient book, the Pharmacopoeia, in order to find him, all while keeping those secrets out of the hands of Russian spies. Discovering transformative elixirs they never imagined could exist, Janie and Benjamin embark on a dangerous race to save the apothecary and prevent impending nuclear disaster.
3/Feb/2013 J. Fitzgerald IST
Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Not Reading, by Tommy Greenwald - There is a more recent sequel - realistic fiction
Grades 4 and up.
“This is a fun, fast-moving look at middle-school life through the eyes of a kid who would rather clean his room than pick up a book. Reluctant readers will be pleased.” --SLJ
"A delightful choice for reluctant readers...Tommy Greenwald’s writing style is breezy and accessible without being too easy. It is also extremely funny and hard to put down. If the book’s cover showed something blowing up, every reluctant boy reader in middle school would be proud to carry it around while secretly enjoying the nonviolent, straightforward story. Bookworms won’t care; they’ll love it either way." --BookPage
1/25/2013 K. Gockley ISB
Monsieur Marceau
Booklist starred (October 15, 20 12 (Vol. 109, No. 4)) *This just won the Orbis Award, is a biography, will be accessible to grade 3*Author may be willing to come out to Beijing***
Grades 2-4. This handsome picture book tells the story of Marcel Marceau, the maestro of mime. Born in France, he was 16 when WWII broke out and shifted his life. He changed his last name to hide his Jewish identity and worked with the French underground. After the war, he studied mime and created his signature character, Bip. Quotes from Marceau connect the silence of those who returned from concentration camps (where his father had died) with his own choice of silence on stage. Schubert distills his complex life story into a short, pithy text that reads aloud well. While she discusses his art and his worldwide fame, a series of images bring Marceau’s movements and emotions to life on the page. Well thought out and varied in composition, DuBois’ paintings illustrate the text literally while expanding it visually and emotionally, particularly in the haunting sequence of narrative scenes during the war. An afterword offers a somewhat more detailed account of Marceau’s life and suggests activities for children who would like to try mime. Even readers with an unfavorable view of mime as a medium will find plenty to admire in this picture-book biography of the man behind the whiteface makeup.Always October - Bruce Coville.
Kirkus Reviews (July 1, 2012)
From the very first line ("We've only got two weeks before Jake has to turn into a monster for the first time") to the riveting ending, this fantasy will have readers turning pages recklessly. Jake, son and grandson of men who disappeared without explanation, becomes enmeshed in the family mysteries when his (informally) adopted baby brother turns into a charming, fuzzy green monster. Jake and his sidekick "Weird Lily" Cawker leave our Earth and land in the world of Always October, where it is ever autumn, the landscape holds many dangers, and monsters reign over all. Their quest: Save both Earth and Almost October from a deranged monster. Documented in alternate chapters by Lily and Jake--which allows each one to end in a cliffhanger--the journey is exciting and moves along at a fine pace. Bursting with enticing charactersand building tension, this book has everything a reader could want--breathtaking suspense, monstrously entertaining worldbuilding and lots of "punny" and burp-and-fart humor. Surprises abound: Most threads are wrapped up, but there is room left for other books with these diverting characters
The No-Dogs-Rule by Kashmira Sheth
Grades 1-3. Eight-year-old Ishan is desperate for a dog. His older brother and Dad agree, but Mom (“the alpha dog of our pack”) opposes the idea, prompting a creative campaign to change her mind. In a series of hilarious misadventures, Ishan sets off the smoke detector preparing Mom’s favorite breakfast, can’t prevent the neighbor’s golden retriever from jumping on Mom, and displays canine behaviors to show how cute they are. During his resultant time-out, Ishan investigates the retriever’s barking and discovers his neighbor needs medical help—and the dog, a temporary home. The author of Boys without Names (2010) here addresses a younger audience with characters who are both funny and believable. Much like his female counterparts Junie B. Jones and Ramona, Ishan’s naivety and creativity will endear him to readers, as will his sibling difficulties. Ishan’s South Asian heritage plays a prominent role, but it doesn’t drive the plot. Illustrated with pencil drawings, this will be popular with beginning chapter-book readers.
1/14/2013 A Boone- ISB
Suggestions from grades 3-5 students, parents and teachers for Panda Nominees Middle Grades
The great unexpected
by Creech, SharonBooklist (June 1, 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 19))
Grades 4-6. “Did a delicate cobweb link us all, silky lines trailing through the air?” Call it coincidence, fate, or just good old-fashioned magic, but the characters in Creech’s latest novel are all connected to one another. Readers are first introduced to two orphan girls—spirited Naomi and truth-teller Lizzie—who live in the small town of Blackbird Tree. Over the course of the novel, they discover a number of mysterious objects and people, namely “Finn boy,” who falls out of a tree into their lives, and a stranger named the Dingle Dangle Man. Alternating with these events are the cryptic goings-on across the ocean in Ireland’s Rooks Orchard, where a woman named Sybil lives with her companion, Miss Pilpenny, and two foxhounds. Although several connections feel too convenient and may strain credulity with some readers, the way that the two plot threads weave together is ultimately a joyous testament to the surprising nature of life and the smallness of our world.The Secret Tree
by Standiford, NatalieBooklist (May 1, 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 17))
Grades 4-7. Minty Fresh knows all the local superstitions: the seven-feet-tall Man-Bat, the Witch Lady, and Crazy Ike. But nothing prepares her for the Secret Tree. There she pulls out slips of paper on which other kids in town have written about crushes, being held back a grade, and even placing curses on their enemies. Minty makes it her mission to track down each writer to see how their secrets affect others—as well as how to handle her own secret fear that she is losing her best friend right before starting middle school. Universal anxieties about growing apart from friends are expressed with such earnest clarity that middle school–bound readers will take comfort from Minty’s discovery that everyone has insecurities and must cope the best way they can. Standiford’s (How to Say Goodbye in Robot, 2009) charming and mysterious story of friendship, growing up, and keeping secrets rests squarely on the shoulders of an immensely likable protagonist who possesses a delightful oddness, like so many imaginative children in real life.The amazing adventures of John Smith, Jr., aka Houdini
by Johnson, Peter, 1951-Booklist (January 1, 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 9))
Grades 5-7. Inspired by the prospect of money and comments made by a writer visiting his middle school, 13-year-old Houdini (nicknamed for his hero) decides to write a “kid’s novel” and finds that it enables him to understand the people around him differently. He has a pretty good handle on his two best friends, but he is less understanding of the people he fears in his working-class Providence neighborhood—namely a classmate with a bullying streak and a one-armed Vietnam veteran known as Old Man Jackson. A bit grittier and more believably boylike than most contemporary first-person narratives, this novel has a lot of heart as well. And while a narrator who makes lists is common enough, Houdini’s are decidedly more amusing than most. With Houdini’s concerns at school and in the neighborhood, not to mention his brother being missing in action in Iraq and his father’s fear of losing his job, the story extends in many directions at once, but Johnson pulls it all together in the end. A Harry Houdini–related bibliography is appended.The spindlers
by Oliver, Lauren, 1982-Booklist (July 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 21))
Grades 4-7. When Liza’s little brother, Patrick, comes downstairs one morning, she knows that Spindlers have gotten him: while he slept, they crept in, stole his soul, deposited their eggs, and slipped back to their underground lairs. Soon the fake Patrick will turn to dust, and a thousand new Spindlers will burst into the world. Liza tries to tell her exhausted, busy parents, but they don’t believe her. So Liza sets out to reclaim Patrick’s soul. Oliver’s new middle-grade novel feels a bit like a fantasy checklist: misunderstood girl goes through door on quest, teams up with eccentric sidekick, is double-crossed, solves riddles and thwarts monsters, is saved from disaster by friendly creatures, and returns home with new understanding. In spite of these familiar elements, the story flows well, with enough dangers to propel the pace and plenty of memorable characters, including Mirabella, the makeup-wearing rat. Oliver creates a sympathetic heroine in Liza, whose trials, both Below and Above, will appeal to young readers.Liar & spy
by Stead, RebeccaBooklist (June 1, 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 19))
Grades 5-7. Stead follows her Newbery Medal winner, When You Reach Me (2009), with another story that deals with reality and perception. Seventh-grader Georges (like Seurat) is living in a new apartment in Brooklyn since the loss of his father’s job necessitated selling their house. His mother still has her job as a nurse, but now she must work double shifts. He goes to the same school, though, which is not necessarily a good thing, because he is relegated to the outsiders’ table. Having a neighbor his age, the loosely homeschooled Safer, offers some new possibilities for Georges, especially since Safer considers himself a spy and is happy to lure Georges into his games. There are two mysteries here: one concerns Georges’ mother, and the other the truth about a shady building tenant, who Safer maintains could be a murderer. Many readers will guess at least part of the truth about the first, despite the sometimes-labored effort put into concealing it. The revelation about the second will be more of a surprise and offers insight into the nature of friendship. Fresh and funny, this will speak to many children trying to find their own wayInside Out and Back Again
by Lai, ThanhhaBooklist starred (January 1, 2011 (Vol. 107, No. 9))
Grades 4-8. After her father has been missing in action for nine years during the Vietnam War, 10-year-old Hà flees with her mother and three older brothers. Traveling first by boat, the family reaches a tent city in Guam, moves on to Florida, and is finally connected with sponsors in Alabama, where Hà finds refuge but also cruel rejection, especially from mean classmates. Based on Lai’s personal experience, this first novel captures a child-refugee’s struggle with rare honesty. Written in accessible, short free-verse poems, Hà’s immediate narrative describes her mistakes—both humorous and heartbreaking—with grammar, customs, and dress (she wears a flannel nightgown to school, for example); and readers will be moved by Hà’s sorrow as they recognize the anguish of being the outcast who spends lunchtime hiding in the bathroom. Eventually, Hà does get back at the sneering kids who bully her at school, and she finds help adjusting to her new life from a kind teacher who lost a son in Vietnam. The elemental details of Hà’s struggle dramatize a foreigner’s experience of alienation. And even as she begins to shape a new life, there is no easy comfort: her father is still gone.Legends of Zita the spacegirl
by Hatke, BenBooklist starred (August 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 22))
Grades 3-6. First things first: Hatke draws awesome aliens. Lots and lots of them. Wee hairy ones and giant blobby ones, many-eyed ones and multiple-limbed ones, giant cat ones and head-inside-another-head ones. They’re all over the place in this smart and sassy interstellar adventure that picks up where Zita the Spacegirl (2011) left off. How do you follow up saving an entire planet from destruction by asteroid? For Zita, you go on a cosmic victory tour, somewhat reluctantly, to meet your adoring throngs of new fans. For Hatke, you whip up a story that digs into the high price of fame without sacrificing a drop of the fun, funny, and far-out charm that made his first graphic novel such a smash. After a robotic imposter takes Zita’s place and promises to save another planet from doom, Zita hijacks a spaceship (and quickly gets libeled as Crimegirl by hysterical galactic media) and eludes the authorities while making a new friend and mentor en route to a cosmic clash between a titanic planetary guardian and vicious heart-shaped space meanies. Zita is still looking for a way home, but it looks like she has got plenty more adventuring to plow through before she finds one. Top-flight space capering brimming with heart and heroism.Mr. and Mrs. Bunny-- detectives extraordinaire!
by Horvath, PollyBooklist starred (February 15, 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 12))
Grades 3-6. Madeleine’s hippie parents, Mildred and Flo, refuse to understand the fifth grade, preferring the esoteric, spiritual truths of luminarias and shopping at the Salvation Army. Madeleine takes two ferries and two buses to school, escaping the peculiarities of Hornby Island to grasp at something normal. Meanwhile, Mr. and Mrs. Bunny have moved into an abandoned carriage house just down the lane and, to complement their interests in automobiles and millinery, are hanging up a detective shingle. When a cadre of sinister foxes (“Mwa-haha,” they intone, having picked it up watching television) kidnap Mildred and Flo, Madeleine joins up with the Detective Bunnies and, without the help of her comatose code-breaker uncle, prepares to rescue them. Horvath tells Mr. and Mrs. Bunny’s tale with old-fashioned nostalgia, juxtaposing it with Madeleine’s schoolgirl mopes in a sweet and sour froth of nonsense. Blackall’s ink-and-wash illustrations provide a quaint and curious punctuation, contributing a peculiar whimsy all their own. The result feels like an instant classic, with a contemporary resonance and a tone of yesteryear, fairly begging to be read aloud. Oh, and there are marmots..Wonder
by Palacio, R. JBooklist starred (February 1, 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 11))
Grades 5-8. Kids’ books about befriending somebody “different” could fill a library. But this debut novel rises to the top through its subtle shifting of focus to those who are “normal,” thereby throwing into doubt presumptions readers may have about any of the characters. Nominally, the story is about 10-year-old August, a homeschooled boy who is about to take the plunge into a private middle school. Even 27 operations later, Auggie’s face has what doctors call “anomolies”; Auggie himself calls it “my tiny, mushed-up face.” He is gentle and smart, but his mere physical presence sends the lives of a dozen people into a tailspin: his sister, his old friends, the new kids he meets, their parents, the school administrators—the list goes on and on. Palacio’s bold move is to leave Auggie’s first-person story to follow these increasingly tangential characters. This storytelling strategy is always fraught with peril because of how readers must refresh their interest level with each new section. However, much like Ilene Cooper’s similarly structured Angel in My Pocket (2011), Palacio’s novel feels not only effortless but downright graceful, and by the stand-up-and-cheer conclusion, readers will be doing just that, and feeling as if they are part of this troubled but ultimately warm-hearted community.The mark of Athena
by Riordan, Rick
Booklist (November 1, 2012
Grades 5-8. Terrifying dreams and enigmatic prophecies mean danger for seven teen demigods, but also good times for fans of The Heroes of Olympus series. This third volume thrusts Percy, Jason, Annabeth, Hazel, Leo, Frank, and Piper into action once again. Representing both Greek and Roman camps, the seven companions undertake a mission to prevent the imminent destruction of Rome, the awakening of Gaea, and the end of the world. Meanwhile, they help Annabeth in her quest to recover the ancient statue of Athena stolen from the Parthenon. Along the way, they encounter Nemesis in Utah, Bacchus in Kansas, Phorcys in Atlanta, Aphrodite in Charleston, and Hercules at the Strait of Gibraltar. Throughout the novel, the juxtaposition of humor and terror makes both aspects of the writing more vivid. The demigods use their wits and their weapons skillfully in a string of encounters, and their insecurities make the characters all the more appealing. With a true storyteller’s sense of pacing, Riordan creates another compelling adventure, right down to the cliff-hanger at the end. Stay tuned for volume four.Splendors and glooms
by Schlitz, Laura AmyBooklist starred (June 1, 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 19))
Grades 4-8. A brooding, Dickensian novel with a touch of fantasy and a glimmer of hope, Schlitz’s latest opens in London in 1860, when lonely Clara, the only remaining child in a doctor’s grief-stricken household, attempts to celebrate her twelfth birthday. Grisini the puppet master is engaged to perform, along with the two orphaned children, Lizzie Rose and Parsefall, who serve as his assistants. Clara bridges the class divide to befriend the children. After kidnapping Clara for ransom, cruel Grisini disappears, leaving Lizzie Rose and Parsefall struggling to survive on their own. They make their way to the country house of a bewitched woman whose magical amulet gives her amazing powers while draining away her humanity. There they learn certain grisly secrets involving their cruel master, Clara’s fate, and the wealthy witch, who seeks to control them all. The magic of the storytelling here lies in the subtle depiction of menacing evil. After working its way insidiously through the characters’ lives, it is defeated by the children, who grow in strength and understanding throughout the novel. Vividly portrayed and complex, the characters are well-defined individuals whose separate strands of story are colorful and compelling. Schlitz weaves them into an intricate tapestry that is as mysterious and timeless as a fairy tale.January 11, 2013 - Nadine R. - ISB
Young Fredle by Cynthia Voigt (2011) - fantasy
Booklist (January 1, 2011 (Vol. 107, No. 9))
Grades 3-5. A companion book to Angus and Sadie (2005) in the Davis Farm series, this story features Fredle, a young mouse who lives behind the wall in the farmhouse kitchen. Captured by Missus and released outdoors, Fredle is blindsided by unfamiliar sensations and scared witless. Though he cautiously befriends Sadie the dog and a couple of outdoor mice, Fredle finds that he must gather his wits to deal with the previously unknown threats, such as raptors (flying predators!) and raccoons, largely on his own. Appealing black-and-white illustrations capture the characters’ actions and emotions with style. Cautious but growing in courage, cunning, and understanding, Fredle makes a sympathetic hero as he slowly discovers that the rules of his own small community do not necessarily make sense in the larger world. That could be a heartening lesson for readers who pick up on it, but others will simply enjoy the hair-raising adventures of this little mouse as he tries to survive alone in the world, find his way back home, and figure out where he really belongs.January 10, 2013 - Nadine R. - ISB
Starry River of the Sky by Grace Lin (2012) - folklore
Booklist starred (October 1, 2012 (Vol. 109, No. 3))
Grades 3-6. This mesmerizing companion to the Newbery Honor Book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (2009) does not disappoint. Rendi has run away from home, stowed in the back of a merchant’s cart, until he is discovered and left stranded in the scarcely populated Village of Clear Sky. There he becomes the innkeeper’s chore boy and is introduced to a cast of characters, including Mr. Shan, a wise older man; Madame Chang, a mysterious out-of-town guest with a gift for storytelling; and a toad whom Mr. Shan calls Rabbit. All the while, the moon is missing, and it seems only Rendi is tormented by the sky’s sad wailing noises at night. Madame Chang insists that for each story she tells—including one about ruler Wang Yi’s wife, who transformed into a toad and lived out the rest of her days on the moon—Rendi must tell one of his own. Unlike its predecessor, this novel is stationary in setting, but it offers up similar stories based on Chinese folklore that interweave with and advance the main narrative. Each of the tales reveals something important about the teller, and most offer a key piece of the mysterious puzzle: what happened to the moon? A few characters from Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, including Magistrate Tiger, appear on the periphery of the action. Lin’s writing is clear and lyrical, her plotting complex, and her illustrations magical, all of which make this a book to be savored.January 10,2013 - Eileen H., Suzhou SIS
Spindlers by Lauren Oliver
"Liza must venture Below to rescue her little brother's soul, stolen by evil, power-hungry spider people called spindlers, in this refreshingly creepy, intricately woven tale.
A concealed hole in the wall behind a narrow bookcase in her family's basement is her entry, and amid loud scratching noises, Liza trips, falling down into the darkness Below. Mirabella, a giant rat who wears newspaper for a skirt, becomes her trusted guide to the spindlers' nests, which Liza must reach before the Feast of the Souls. But things are never what they seem in Oliver's vividly imagined world....An arduous, dangerous and fantastical journey ensues. As in the author's first terrific book for middle-grade readers, Liesl & Po (2011), there is a smorgasbord of literary references, including strong echoes of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. It is laced with humor and engaging wordplay, as well as riddles and death-defying tests and enchantments. Wholly original creatures populate the tale, some reassuring and wise, like the nocturni and lumer-lumpen, others wonderfully macabre (and ferocious), like the queen of the spindlers and the shape-shifting scawgs. In the course of her episodic quest, Liza discovers she is resourceful and brave; she sees things differently than before.
Richly detailed, at times poetic, ultimately moving; a book to be puzzled over, enjoyed and, ideally, read aloud.(Fantasy. 8-12)"
Kirkus Reviews online (May 2, 2012)
December 12, 2012 - Karen G., ISB
The Superheroes Employment Agency by Marily Singer, 2012
Booklist (July 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 21))
Grades 2-4. Need a superhero? Batman out of your budget? Then head on down to the Superheroes Employment Agency, where you can rent the services of such B-listers as Blunder Woman, the Verminator, and Stuporman. Singer introduces each wannabe via a comic poem. For example, Weathergirl’s speciality is disrupting tea parties by creating a storm in the teapot: “They’re always planning something sinister / against a monarch or prime minister / over cake and cups of tea. / But then they have to deal with me.” Singer relates some stories with comic strips or fake advertisements and even finds ways to have two characters meet for transactions of business (or romance). Two four-page “reports” provide longer examples of a superhero's heroism. Take the Pretzel, for instance, who did a nice job tying his foes in knots, even if he did cause a mess: “The truth must be told: / it’s the Pretzel’s own fault / that our clients’ neat home / got so sprinkled with salt.” Meanwhile, Jones’ exaggerated cartoon interpretations of these bumblers keeps things super-duper silly.Timeless Thomas by Gene Barretta, 2012
Booklist (July 2012 (Vol. 108, No. 21))
Grades 2-4. Following his purviews of Ben Franklin (Now & Ben, 2006) and Leonardo da Vinci (Neo Leo, 2009), Barretta applies the same picture-book format to the inventions of Thomas Edison. Left-hand pages show people using modern technology (“Today . . . we can record any sound we like and save it”), while, across the spreads, Barretta reveals the roots found in Edison’s work: “Edison’s tinfoil phonograph was the first device to record sound and play it back.”Barretta covers the expected Edisonian highlights—the telephone, the light bulb, and the battery—alongside other fascinating projects, such as a huge vending machine designed to dole out urban necessities, including coal and produce, or the first movie studio, built on a circular track to allow sunlight to shine through an exposed roof. Chipper cartoon illustrations show a perma-grinning Edison cranking out invention after invention, but Barretta also slyly draws in some of Edison’s employees, who are identified in short concluding biographies, emphasizing that Edison didn’t go it alone. An entertaining, enlightening intro.November 12, 2012 - Eleanor S - IST
Breaking Stalin's Nose by Eugene Yelchin (Holt, 2011)
This simple yet engaging story is told in the first-person and set in the Stalinist USSR. According to Horn Book (starred review, Sept/Oct 2011), "…this brief novel gets at the heart of a society that asks its citizens, even its children, to report on relatives and friends. Appropriately menacing illustrations by first-time novelist Yelchin add a sinister tone.” Recommended for ages 9 and up but could also work well in the Older Readers' category. I have successfully recommended this to 11th and 12th graders studying the USSR.
November 15, 2012 - K Gockley, ISB
A Strange Place to Call Home by Marilyn Singer, illustrated by Ed Young (From Tanjian)
Booklist (October 15, 2012 (Vol. 109, No. 4))
Grades K-3. Why would some animals choose to live in extreme heat, cold, dryness, or darkness? Fourteen poems celebrate the unusual animals that have adapted to equally unusual habitats where competition is lighter and safety from predators is greater. Humboldt penguins burrow eggs along the dry coasts of Chile and Peru rather than riding on ice floes; snow monkeys stay warm by huddling in hot springs rather than swinging from trees; and ice worms wriggle beneath glacial ice rather than soil, aided by their natural antifreeze. Other poems, including the styles of free verse, rhyming, haiku, triolet, villanelle, and terza rima, describe the adaptations of blind cave fish, mudskippers, mountain goats, and petroleum flies. The final poem, “City Living,” shows adaptation in progress as red foxes adjust to urban sprawl. Young’s textured paper collage illustrations help evoke some of the planet’s seemingly less hospitable locales. Endnotes offer more information about each animal as well as the poetry forms used. This enlightening collection brings beauty and respect to strangeness.November 22, Nadine R. - ISB
Mind if I Read Your Mind? by Henry Winkler (Scholastic Press, 2012)
From the Publisher:
Billy and Hoover are back in the hilarious new series from bestselling authors Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver!
It's time for Moorepark Middle School's annual Speak Out Challenge, and Billy Broccoli thinks he's got it made. With his best friend Hoover Porterhouse--the ghost with the most--by his side, Billy's got the competition in the bag. Who wouldn't vote for a demonstration on mind reading?
But when Billy lands a spot on the sixth grade team, he starts spending more time with his new teammates than he does with Hoover. And the Hoove plays second fiddle to no one! If Billy's not careful, his secret weapon might just vanish into thin air, leaving Billy to pick up the pieces of a demonstration day disaster!
November 22, Nadine R. - ISB
George and the Big Bang by Lucy Hawking (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers,c2012)
Booklist (September 1, 2012 (Online))
Grades 3-6. This, the third volume in a series by famed physicist Hawkins and his capable writer-daughter, blends the ongoing adventures of friends George and Annie with the latest theories about the universe. The breezily readable third-person narrative—accompanied by cheery spot illustrations—provides the framework for highlighting the science principles presented in four essays by experts in the field, with several pages devoted to each. There are also a dozen or so shorter “Special Factual Sections” that expound on topics such as “Problems Facing Our Planet,” “Space, Time, and Relativity,” and “The Quantum World.” As George and Annie travel to the moon and across Europe attempting to save her father, a cosmologist, from the evil organization TOERAG (intent on destroying him and much of scientific advancement), there occasionally seems to be a disconnect between the sweet, simple sci-fi plot and the technicalities of the information. Still, it’s clear that the former exists primarily to advance the later, making the book good for educational use and, most importantly, enjoyable for science-minded kid
November 23 - K Gockley, ISB
Nic Bishop Snakes
Booklist (November 15, 2012 (Vol. 109, No. 6))
Grades 2-4. For those who like their snakes way up close and personal, Bishop’s stunning photographs ought to do the trick. Unusual varieties of the slithery creatures, most pictured larger than life, fill the pages and are often poised as if ready to jump right out into readers’ laps. The photos are so alluring that it is tempting to overlook the text filling negative spaces, but readers will appreciate these brief and engrossing nuggets of information. It’s the same simple, highly effective format used in Nic Bishop Spiders (2007), Nic Bishop Frogs (2008), Nic Bishop Lizards (2010), and more. This time out, the showstopping centerfold is a Mojave rattlesnake pictured three times its actual size. The book closes with an interesting two-page note by Bishop about the particular challenges of photographing snakes. This will work as a read-aloud